Electric Out For 54 Hours

I published my last blog post while on standby power from my Uninterrupted Power Supply then goodbye computer for almost three business days due to the 15 inches (38 cm) of snow we received in a 24 hour period. Trees fall, power lines get tangled, fuses blow and viola! No juice.

Vidya got a little cabin fever because there isn’t enough natural light in her basement studio to do any painting and other gourd work needs electric powered tools. So instead of working, she was cooped up in the house. She survived.

We were basically okay as we had water and our heat source is a biomass thermal conversion unit that utilizes natural convective forces for distribution. Which is to say we have wood stoves that aren’t dependent on fans.

US Renewable Energy Industry Needs the Heat in Biomass

by Charlie Niebling and Jon Strimling, BTEC

The U.S. biomass thermal industry is poised to offer significant carbon and financial savings for consumers. Biomass for thermal energy is up to 90% efficient; in contrast, using biomass for the production of electricity is up to 40% efficient, and producing transportation fuels from biomass resources uses only 15% of the energy potential in this precious resource. It is vital to our economy – and our planet – to promote energy resources that are efficient and renewable. As part of the broader renewable energy solution, biomass thermal can uniquely address the need for low-cost, locally supported energy sources…

I spent the time undistracted by the computer finishing up my seed, fruit and nut tree, berries, and ornamental orders. I have totally succumbed to catalog fever and ended up ordering from 14 catalogs.

I will type them up and share the lists later. My thinking is I feel reasonably well that with some help I can get a lot of stuff planted this year and next year I may not be able to.

2 catalogs are just growers supplies like floating row cover and some tools, one I only ordered two things from including a passionflower that is hardy to Zone 5. Fragrant blooms and edible fruit, how could I resist? A couple of catalogs were only fragrant perennial flowers, vines and shrubs but they all sound so great, I have no willpower.

We also spent a lot of time digging paths and driveways out so we can move around easily.

The car chose this time to not start. During some routine maintenance I had discovered the positive clamp on the battery was loose and tightened it but it came loose again and the battery was dead. We tried jumping it, using two sets of jumper cables hooked together to reach the battery from behind the vehicle but no luck. I pulled the battery and we drove up to Janaki’s who lives out on Rt. 250 and still had electric. I hooked up the battery to a charger and left it there over night, then drove into town and bought a new battery clamp.

We had to take the Astro van which even with a few hundred pounds in the back for traction is still less capable of tackling an icy road then the front wheel drive Toyota.

I had to swing into the left lane at Billy Aston’s and then gun it into the turn which required a sliding turn to maintain enough momentum to pull the slick hill. I slowly lost speed to a crawl by the top but made it — you can’t gain speed going up slick hills. All that practice cutting cookies on icy roads in North Dakota as a bored youth paid off.

It is all good today, Toyota running, electric back on, most of the orders placed. Hare Krishna.

Plain living and high thinking. Glad you have power restored, although I imagine the lack thereof was a kind of catharsis provided were able to stay warm…though it sounds as if Vidya went a bit stir crazy. At least you were able to view the Great American Violent Ground Acquisition passtime. Stay warm and be advised it is really snowing hard here in Columbus, so you have more on the way.

Judging from what we have thus far (and it is still coming down hard) you had better get in some firewood while you can…you’ll most probably get at least 8 more. I miss the view and how pretty it looks up on the ridge right about now…wish I were there.